I wanted to make a moto jacket for my Paris wardrobe. I bought this teal reptile quilted-ish stretch woven from Mood months ago.

I had the lining in my stash. It is a heavy charmeuse that has an almost hammered look. I have a lot of it!

There are so many moto patterns available these days that I had a hard time deciding which to use but, in the end, I decided to go with the Lisette pattern, Butterick 6169, which has many satisfied reviews on Pattern Review. This collarless jacket is lined, has shoulder pads, shoulder princess seams front and back, in-seam welt pockets, and two-piece sleeves. Most reviewers noted that it has more-than-usual ease through the bust. Of course, I still made modifications:

Alterations and modifications:

I started with my usual size 18.

This jacket has more bust ease than similar jackets. Many reviews have mentioned that they didn't need an FBA. I did do an FBA, but I added much less ease than usual.

Narrowed the shoulder by about 1-1/2". This is more than usual.

1/2" forward shoulder adjustment.

From other reviews, I saw that the jacket was on the short side. I lengthened it by 2".

Shortened the sleeve by 1".

Removed 4" from the waist at the side seams.

Swapped out the vertical in-seam pockets for angled zippered pockets.

Added zippers with gussets to the sleeves. I used a technique similar to my tutorial, though I actually centered the zippers at the seam. Centering the zippers requires more facings, but the technique is similar.

I used the reverse side of the fabric (which is black) for the front and back neck facings so that it exposes black when the lapel is folded back.

I mentioned my zipper expedition a couple posts ago. I wanted teal zippers for this jacket and I found a size 5 zipper with black tape and chunky metallic teal teeth at J.N. Zippers. They had both separating and closed styles and I had them shortened to my desired length. I also had them swap the silver zipper pull for a black slider. The front zipper is 20" long, the pocket zippers are 6", and the gusset zippers are 5".

Finished zipper pocket

Installing the zipper in the sleeve seam

Installing the zipper gusset. I used remnants of crinkled taffeta for the wedge-shaped gussets.

Finished sleeves

Zippers galore!

Back facing + lining using the reverse side of the reptile fabric. The heavy charmeuse lining has a hammered look.

Britex Fabrics pulled together a fun event last night! PROJKT Maiden Lane was a runway show featuring 4 designers, all with a connection to Project Runway or Tim Gunn. Britex closed off the entire length of Maiden Lane, festooned the lane with lights, brought in a DJ with a sound system, and installed a long red felt runway. It was a lovely evening in San Francisco, a bit nippy, but nowhere near as cold as it can get. Before and after the show the first floor was open to guests for some late-night shopping and champagne.

Lining up for the eventPhoto credit: Britex Fabrics

It was Very Civilized.

Sharman, the owner of Britex, and Kirby are filling the goody bagsPhoto credit: Britex Fabrics

Setting up Maiden LanePhoto credit: Britex Fabrics

The runway. There's Wendy peeking out!

Looking across the runway

Waiting for the show to startPhoto credit: Rose

Emily Payne, a former Britex sales person on the first floor, a contestant on season 13 of Project Runway, and season 5 of Project Runway All Stars, kicked off the show. She continues to have close ties to Britex and was the impetus for the PROJK Maiden Lane event. Emily presented two runway shows, starting the evening with her children's line, named for her daughter, Devon Rose.

The second runway show featured Emily's adult clothing. Emily commissioned some art pieces from Lance Victor Moore, who made some compelling face masks, designed to disguise the gender of the wearer. All of the models, male and female, wore one of these interesting-but-creepy, one-of-a-kind masks.

Richard Hallmarq, a contestant on season 11 of Project Runway, presented the third runway show. His clothing featured knitwear and day looks. You can see more about Richard on his Instagram feed. Rey Ortiz, a contestant on season 1 of Under the Gunn, presented the fourth runway show, featuring evening wear. You can see more on his Instagram feed. The final runway of the evening, by Kini Zamora, contestant on season 13 of PR and season 5 of PR All Stars, featured his evening wear and clothing made with double-sided mesh fabric. You can learn more about Kini on his Instagram feed.

I took photos of the runway, but most of them did not come out, which is why my descriptions are so brief. One of my few pics that wasn't a complete blur is this dress by Richard Hallmarq:

me, Sharman, and Ronda Chaney, who is wearing a self-made Kathryn Brenne jacketPhoto credit: one of Ronda's former students

Sharman Spector, owner of Britex, had a busy weekend! Her big event, PROJKT Maiden Lane was Friday night, and she was the featured guest at Artistry in Fashion on Saturday.

I love this annual event! Ronda Chaney, chair of the Fashion Department, asked me to help out with Sharman's talk, which was formatted as an informal Q & A.

Photo credit: Lynn C

Photo credit: Lynn C

Photo credit: Wendy

Photo credit: Wendy

I had left my regular glasses in the car, so I had to wear my prescription sunglasses!Photo credit: Wendy

Photo credit: Wendy

Photo credit: Wendy

Other than the featured guest, one of my favorite things about AIF is seeing my tribe! You might recognize some of these talented folk!

Dorothy and Ann, each wearing self made

Patty and Mary, two talented sisters! Both are wearing self made outfits and Mary also made her purse from canvas that she painted. Mary Boalt is also one of my favorite people to follow on Pinterest!

A closeup of Mary's self-painted, self-made, purse!

Chris Groom and Mary Lou Lange, each wearing self made. Chris gave me a piece of that gorgeous ikat last year and I am busy thinking on how to use it!

Lovely Heather is wearing a self made "ball" necklace. She purchased that beautiful vest some years ago from Ruti. She came upon me buying my first purchase of the day in that very booth.

Artistry in Fashion raises funds for scholarships for deserving fashion students. Much of the student work is on display.

A beautiful felted vest made by one of the students

A hallway of student work

Have you heard of the book #OOTD (Outfit of the Day) by Angela Lan? Angela is fourteen years old and she's published a book on sewing and designing clothes for 12- to 16-year-olds. She learned to sew at the age of 11 and wasn't happy with existing books which focused on making pillowcases and other non-garment projects. She wanted to make clothes that she could wear, so she wrote a book, with included patterns. She is a very impressive young lady and she had a table at AIF, selling her books. Keep an eye on this one, as she might go very far.

And, of course, the main event at AIF is the shopping! There are lots and lots of vendors! I didn't take that many photos of the shopping because, well, I was busy. But here are a few that I took towards the end.

My friend Sarah was selling her beautiful ball necklaces!

One of the many jewelry vendors

One of the many clothing vendors

And, of course, you may have noticed one of my purchases!Can you see what it is?!?!?!Can you?!It's made from eyeglass lenses!!! Most of them have been etched.I love it!

I visited Seattle again last week and work is heating up. I have only a few weeks before Munich and Paris and I won't be doing a whole lot more sewing before then. (Though I do have one more almost-finished project that I hope to finish tomorrow.) The fall colors in Seattle were wonderful!

I learned that these are Horse Chestnuts, or Conkers, if you're British. I've never seen these in San Francisco! (They are evidently poisonous.)